Mobile devices present an increasingly common platform for a variety of different functions, such as communication, computing, business, and entertainment. To assist in the performance of these functions, a mobile device can include content that can be experienced via the mobile device. Examples of content can include applications, games, video, audio, graphics, and so on. While some mobile devices can be purchased with pre-loaded content, a burgeoning market has arisen for content that can be purchased and loaded by users of mobile devices.
Several different entities may cooperate to provide access to a mobile marketplace that enables users to locate, select, purchase, and receive content. These entities can include a content producer, a mobile operator, and a mobile marketplace host. The content producer originates or generates content, and can include an entity such as an independent software vendor. The mobile operator provides infrastructure and services to enable wireless communication and data transfer. The mobile operator can include an entity such as a cell phone service provider. The mobile marketplace host provides a market platform whereby content can be presented to users of a mobile device. For example, the mobile marketplace host can include a web-based marketing and purchasing resource (e.g., a website) or other wireless-accessible resource that can present content to users and enable the users to purchase the content.
In one example scenario, a cell phone user subscribes to a cell phone service provided by a particular mobile operator. The cell phone user utilizes a cell phone to run a mobile marketplace application and access a mobile marketplace service via the Internet. The cell phone user then views instances of content presented via the mobile marketplace service and purchases an instance of the content by interacting with the service. The instance of the content was originally generated by a particular content producer and was then marketed and made available for purchase by the mobile marketplace service. The cell phone user then receives and consumes the content on his or her cell phone.
While cooperation of these different entities in creating and maintaining the mobile marketplace can provide a tremendous marketing and purchasing resource, allocating revenue resulting from mobile marketplace transactions can be challenging. Current ways of revenue allocation are typically based on an agreement between the various mobile marketplace entities and simply utilize a static percentage-of-transaction allocation for each of the entities. Such ways of revenue allocation typically cannot account for variations in transaction details or for changes in a revenue allocation agreement between particular mobile marketplace entities.